Hi,
I wore this outfit to a wedding recently. It is a 2 piece, a skirt and strapless top made out of Kente material from Ghana, West Africa…. my heritage.
The Kente cloth is one of the most recognised fabrics in Africa. It is Ghana’s national material and is extremely symbolic for Ghanaians, particularly from the Ashanti tribe. It represents pride and history and has an important link to the Ashanti Royal Kingdom.
The word kente is from the word “kenten” which means basket. It is a type of silk/cotton fabric and is mainly worn by the Akan ethnic group of Ghana. The cloths are beautifully hand woven with bright, vibrant, mutilcoloured, bold designs. It is worn to many different ceremonies e.g weddings, baby namings, graduations etc. Every design has a story and proverbial meaning and the fabrics come in many different colours. Each colour also represents something for example,
Blue= sky, holiness,peace,good fortune and love
Purple= earth and healing.
As you can now appreciate, Ghanaian’s wear this fabric with pride. The majority of the Ghanaians at this wedding wore Kente and both men and women can wear it. The men wear a large length of material strategically thrown over one shoulder and the remainder wrapped around the body. Women tend to wear a skirt and top or a one piece with a design to fit the persons personal style and taste. You can buy the material from an African textiles/material shop i.e. in Liverpool Street, London and a good seamstress can make the the outfit.
Well that was my attempt to give a cultural lesson… I hope you enjoyed it.
With love
Angela Nx
Aspire to elevate yourself and others…
x